The Death Of Us Author Abigail Dean Wins Top Crime Writer Award

Lawyer-turned-author Abigail Dean has won a top crime writer award for her thriller The Death Of Us.

Dean took home the 2026 Gold Dagger for the best crime novel of the year at the prestigious Crime Writers’ Association (CWA) Dagger Awards for her book which explores how a violent crime reverberates through a marriage over decades.

The writer, who also penned Girl A and Day One, picked up the award during the CWA gala dinner on Thursday evening, beating out fellow nominees Holly Jackson, SA Cosby, Vaseem Khan, Ariel Lawhon and Laura Shepherd-Robinson.

The evening also saw Cosby, the only author to be shortlisted for an unprecedented three Dagger awards, take home the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger, which honours the best thriller of the year, with his book King Of Ashes.

The Southern Gothic crime epic was inspired in part by The Godfather and combines family drama, organised crime, revenge, and long-buried secrets.

Prior to becoming an award-winning novelist, Cosby worked in construction, retail and security, making his breakthrough into the literary world with the novel Blacktop Wasteland.

CWA chair Nadine Matheson said: “It is a genuine pleasure to congratulate every winner of this year’s Daggers.

“The range and quality on display are a reminder of just how much vitality there is in crime fiction and how it continues to push at its own boundaries, and this year’s winners are leading that charge. Congratulations.”

Nina Allan received the Historical Dagger for A Granite Silence, a mystery that follows the disappearance of a young girl in 1930s Aberdeen.

Meanwhile Sarah Pinborough took home the Twisted Dagger for psychological suspense for her Gothic novel We Live Here Now.

Pinborough is known for writing Behind Her Eyes, which was adapted into a Netflix series in 2021 and starred Tom Bateman, Simona Brown, Eve Hewson and Robert Aramayo.

The award ceremony also saw Mel Pennant win the Whodunnit Dagger for A Murder for Miss Hortense, while the Crime Fiction in Translation Dagger was won by Antti Tuomainen with The Winter Job.

The author is one of Finland’s most internationally acclaimed crime writers, and is often described as the “King of Helsinki Noir”.

His translator David Hackston was also recognised in the award.

The Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction was awarded to Susannah Stapleton for That Dark Spring. After training as an archaeologist, Stapleton worked in museums and art galleries before becoming a historical researcher.

Her debut, The Adventures of Maud West, Lady Detective, was also previously shortlisted for the same award.

The Short Story Dagger went to Ambrose Parry for The Apple Falls Not Far.

Parry is the joint pen name of Scottish crime novelist Chris Brookmyre and his wife, former consultant anaesthetist Marisa Haetzman.

Tim Sullivan was awarded The Dagger in the Library, which is voted for by librarians and recognises authors whose bodies of work have resonated with readers over time.

He is also a screenwriter and director who wrote the screenplay for the 2010 film Letters to Juliet which starred Amanda Seyfried and Vanessa Redgrave.

Laura McCluskey received the Creasey First Novel Dagger with The Wolf Tree while the Emerging Author Dagger went to Michael Nikitin for Blind Side of the Sun.

The CWA Diamond Dagger, which was announced earlier this year, was awarded to Mark Billingham, who said: “I could not be more thrilled or honoured. To be added to a list that features most of my literary heroes is fantastic.”

Published: 03/07/2026 by Radio NewsHub